Phuket Police Arrest Delivery Rider for Foreign Home Burglaries
Phuket police arrested a 23‑year‑old food delivery rider and semi‑professional football player for burglarizing two foreign homes and stealing over 3.6 million baht in cash, gold, a camera and a drone. The suspect was caught at a checkpoint in Mai Khao, Thalang after returning to the island from Trang province. Authorities have recovered most of the stolen property and returned items to the victims.
On September 30, the Chalong Police Station received reports of two burglaries at foreign residents’ homes. In the first incident, the thief took twelve camera‑related items worth 387,788 baht; in the second, he stole about US$100,000 in cash, bringing the total loss to over 3.69 million baht. Investigators traced the crimes to a food‑delivery rider who had previously delivered meals to the victims’ houses, using those visits to scout the properties and identify weak points. After the thefts, the suspect exchanged some of the US dollars for baht in Patong, bought gold and spent the remainder on personal expenses and football betting. On October 1, officers from Chalong and Phuket City police searched the suspect’s residence, seizing several items including the motorcycle used in the crimes, and gathered evidence to obtain an arrest warrant. On October 2, investigators learned the suspect was driving an MG5 toward his hometown in Trang province and was heading back to Phuket, prompting a coordinated checkpoint operation at the Tha Chalongchai checkpoint where he was stopped. A search of the vehicle recovered the stolen cash, gold, camera, drone and other items, and further checks yielded about 250,000 baht in additional assets. Police have already returned all twelve camera items to the first victim and recovered more than 1.32 million baht of the second victim’s losses. The suspect told investigators that the remaining money was spent on football gambling and personal use, and authorities continue to process the case and examine related property.
